“Why does God, who is love, keep us waiting?
Because He is love, and seeks love. Love that does not know how to wait is not
love. To love is to give ourselves. No only for a fraction of a lifetime, nor
with a part of its strength: love is, and seeks, the total gift of self….Delays in union [with God] are not time lost; far from it. God sees very far
ahead; He makes wonderful use of what we call evil – of ourwanderings, our
hesitations and detours, although He does not love them or want them. It is at these
moments, above all, that we need confidence and perseverance. The prayer,
whether for ourselves or for others, that is not discouraged, which persists
and besieges Heaven, touches God’s heart; and that is why He tells us to
persevere.”

Dom Augustin Guillerand, O. Cart.

A French Carthusian monk (1877-1945) of the Charterhouse of La Valsainte, Switzerland

About the author

Paul A. Zalonski is from New Haven, CT. He is a member of the Fraternity of Communion and Liberation, a Catholic ecclesial movement, and an Oblate of Saint Benedict. Contact Paul at paulzalonski[at]yahoo.com.